worldwide news
The death of a pregnant Polish woman has reignited debate over abortion in one of Europe’s most devoutly Catholic countries, with activists saying she could still be alive if it were not for a near total ban on terminating pregnancies. Tens of thousands of Poles took to the streets to protest in January this year …
Read more “Pregnant Woman’s Death Ignites Debate About Poland’s Abortion Law”
The coup in Sudan puts into doubt the process that would have seen France cancel some $5 billion debt it was owed by the African country, France’s foreign ministry said on Friday, the latest power to pressure military leaders who seized power. France, Sudan’s second-largest creditor, has been a main actor in backing the interim …
Read more “Coup Puts Into Question Sudan’s Debt Cancellation, France Says”
Cybersecurity experts say Microsoft’s recent disclosure that alleged Russian hackers successfully attacked several IT service providers this year is a sign that many U.S. IT companies have underinvested in security measures needed to protect themselves and their customers from intrusions. But a U.S.-based association of IT professionals says the industry’s efforts to combat foreign hacking …
The United States is keeping a close watch on Russian troop movements near the country’s border with Ukraine, describing the activity as “unusual.” “We continue to monitor this closely,” Pentagon press secretary John Kirby told reporters Friday, while calling on Moscow to publicly explain its intentions. “Without getting into greater detail right now, I think …
Read more “Russian Military Maneuvers Near Ukraine ‘Unusual,’ US Warns”
In a tit-for-tat round of recriminations, Belarus summoned Poland’s top diplomat in Minsk on Thursday to protest claims made earlier this week by Warsaw that Belarusian border guards had threatened to open fire on a Polish patrol. The Belarusian Foreign Ministry said Polish allegations were unfounded and it accused Poland of engaging in “megaphone diplomacy” and issuing …
Read more “Tensions Soar on Poland-Belarus Border as Warsaw Protests Incursion”
Editor’s note: Here is a fast take on what the international community has been up to this past week, as seen from the United Nations perch. Leaders talk global warming in Glasgow — World leaders met in Glasgow, Scotland, this week to try to halt global warming. But with some of the world’s biggest emitters …
Activists will take over the UN climate summit in Scotland on Friday, capping off a week of dizzying government speeches and pledges with a student march, youth-led presentations, and a giant iceberg shipped from Greenland to Glasgow’s River Clyde to dramatize the plight of the Arctic. UK organizers decided to hand the day over to …
Read more “Young Activists to Take Spotlight for a Day at UN Climate Talks”
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization has reported its Food Price Index, which tracks the international prices of a basket of food, found that in October, the cost of a basket of food was up 3% from September. The FAO Cereal Price Index increased 3.2% in October from the previous month, while the price of wheat rose by 5% amid reduced harvests from major exporters of wheat …
The “end of coal” is in sight, according to Britain, host of the COP26 climate summit, after dozens of countries pledged to stop using coal and end the financing of fossil fuels. Burning coal is the single biggest contributor to climate change, accounting for about 40% of global carbon dioxide emissions, Britain said. At the …
Read more “COP26: Britain Hails Global Deals to ‘End Coal’ but Plans New Mine”
An Earth-flight giant contributes to NASA’s upcoming moon missions. Plus, words from the next crew to visit the International Space Station and grim news from NASA about the future of food on Earth. VOA’s Arash Arabasadi brings us the Week in Space. …
In the fight to curb climate change, several major coal-using nations announced steps Thursday to wean themselves — at times slowly — off of the heavily polluting fossil fuel. The pledges to phase out coal come on top of other promises made at the U.N. climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland, that the head of an …
Read more “Countries Pledge to Cut Heavily Polluting Coal, With Caveats”
Russia has ordered the expulsion of a Dutch journalist — the second deportation of a resident foreign correspondent in the past two months — and has reduced natural gas supplies to energy-starved Europe. News of the abrupt moves came as American intelligence chief William Burns was concluding a rare two-day visit to Moscow, part of …
Read more “Russia Expels Dutch Journalist, Reduces Gas Supplies to Europe”
A Russian analyst who provided information for a dossier of research used during the Trump-Russia investigation has been arrested by U.S. authorities as part of an ongoing special counsel investigation, the Justice Department said Thursday. Igor Danchenko is the third person, and second in a two-month span, to face charges in special counsel John Durham’s …
Read more “Russian Analyst Who Helped Compile Trump-Russia Dossier Arrested by US Authorities”
The World Health Organization’s regional director for Europe said Thursday the continent is now the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic, accounting for 59 percent of all cases globally. At a virtual news briefing from Copenhagen, Hans Kluge said the current pace of transmission across the region’s 53 countries is of grave concern. He said new cases are approaching record levels, with the delta variant of the coronavirus driving the surge. Kluge said his …
Britain has granted conditional approval to the first pill shown to effectively treat COVID-19. The pill, molnupiravir, was jointly developed by the U.S. pharmaceutical companies Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics. Data showed the drug, when given orally during the onset of COVID-19 symptoms, could cut COVID-related deaths and hospitalizations in half among people at high risk …
Read more “Britain Conditionally Approves First COVID-19 Antiviral Pill”
Ukraine on Thursday appointed a new defense minister with a mandate to strengthen the army, as the country remains locked in conflict with pro-Russia separatists. Oleksiy Reznikov, a lawyer with limited military experience, replaces Andriy Taran, who resigned earlier this week reportedly for health reasons. A total of 273 lawmakers in the 450-seat Ukrainian parliament …
Read more “Ukraine Gets New Defense Minister to Strengthen Army”
Russia is increasing pressure on independent Russian media by legislating the systematic labeling of many of them as “foreign agents,” a category that in Russia is historically associated with the idea of “enemies of the state.” Jon Spier narrates this report from the VOA Moscow Bureau. …
Russia’s military buildup along its border with Ukraine is not yet setting off any alarms in Washington. The United States’ highest-ranking military officer Wednesday said the U.S. was aware of Moscow’s military movement, describing it as “significant” but also as “nothing overtly aggressive.” “We’ve seen this before,” General Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint …
Read more “US Not Yet Alarmed by Russian Military Buildup Near Ukraine”
The U.S. government has added four foreign technology companies to its restricted companies list, saying they “developed and supplied spyware to foreign governments” and that the spyware was used “to maliciously target government officials, journalists, businesspeople, activists, academics, and embassy workers.” The State Department accused the companies of “engaging in activities contrary to the national …
Read more “US Blacklists Four Foreign Companies for ‘Malicious Cyber Activities’”
Spain faces a fresh energy crisis after Algeria shut off supplies of natural gas through one of the two pipelines linking Spain with the North African state. Like many other European countries, Spain has been hit hard by soaring electricity prices in recent months. A surge in demand as the world’s economies began to recover …
Read more “Diplomatic Dispute Between Algeria and Morocco Prompts Energy Crisis in Spain”
Russian special services have charged former journalist Ivan Safronov with selling information on Russian military operations in Syria for $248 to a political analyst who they say then passed it to German intelligence, Safronov’s lawyer said. In a rare glimpse into the classified investigation against Safronov, lawyer Ivan Pavlov said the Syria-related charge had been …
Read more “Lawyer: Russia Accuses Ex-reporter of Being Paid $248 for Treason”
China and Russia are set to introduce a joint resolution to the United Nations Security Council calling for an end to a host of economic sanctions on North Korea. Among the sanctions the two countries want lifted are a ban on North Koreans working overseas and sending home their earnings, exporting seafood and textiles and ending a cap …
Read more “China, Russia Urge UN Security Council to Lift Economic Sanctions on N. Korea ”
U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday announced ambitious climate commitments at the United Nations Climate Change Conference, also known as COP26, in Glasgow, Scotland. He also slammed Chinese and Russian leaders for not doing their part. VOA’s White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara brings this report from Glasgow. Produced by: Kimberlyn Weeks Anita Powell contributed to this report. …
“My granduncle — cousin of my grandfather — was a Catholic priest who was put in the labor camp when the communist regime barbarically tried to destroy all the monasteries,” said Miriam Lexmann, one of dozens of legislators from around the world who gathered in Rome last weekend on the sidelines of the G-20 summit. …
Read more “Soviet-Era Memories Shape European Lawmakers’ View of China and Taiwan “